One Amazing Friendship
by awesomeperson379
Summary: They had been so different when they met, one was a silly, the other shy, one was crazy, the other quiet. No one would've guessed that they would become friends. But they did, and good friends too. This is a story about the friendship of James Potter and Remus Lupin. (T for mild language. No slash.)


**A/N: okay, so here's my James and Remus friendship story. I'm not sure it came out that great, but… oh well. Oh, and this is a friendship story, NOT SLASH. Written for Morning Lilies' "Yellow Rose Bowl: A Friendship Competition". Hope you like it! oh, and obviously, I do not own Harry Potter.**

_**"A true friend advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably."**_

Sunlight streamed through the windows of the Gryffindor common room. It was a warm day for mid September, and most of the Hogwarts students were outside enjoying it.

Young James Potter glanced around the common room, looking for something interesting to do. His eyes landed on another first year boy sitting at a table in reading. He remembered the thin, tawny haired boy as Remus Lupin, from the train ride two weeks prior.

He thought it was strange for someone to be inside reading when it was such a nice day and you could be outside playing Quiditch. Come to think of it, he had never seen Remus playing with anyone else, he was always reading.

He decided that maybe Remus might just be lonely, and only needed someone to pull him away from his books.

James stuck his hand on top of the book to get the Remus' attention. Remus looked up a bit nervously.

"Hello," James said cheerfully, holding out a hand to shake. "I'm James Potter."

"Remus Lupin," the other first year said quietly.

"Well, Remus Lupin, I have a question. Why are you in here reading instead of outside playing like all the others?"

"I just like reading," Remus replies, turning back to his book.

"But going outside is more fun," argued James.

"I have nothing to do outside," Remus replied, this time not looking up from the book.

But James potter is not so easily subdued. He pulled Remus' book away and closed it.

"Hey!" Remus shouted, surprised and annoyed.

"Come on, we're going outside," James said. "And we're going to have _fun_."

Remus looked reluctant, but he could see that James was not going to take 'no' for an answer.

"Well… All right," he agreed.

James grinned and grabbed Remus by the arm, dragging him out to the grounds.

Xxx

"We really shouldn't be doing this," Remus whispered to his friends, all of who were currently pressed against a low stone wall, preparing to enter a _very_ old building- it was actually an old wizard's safe- that was approximately three hours from being demolished.

"Oh come on Mooney, it'll be fun," insisted James.

"Yeah, sure, a huge old building that could collapse under our weight, fall on top of us, is possibly full of old curses, and will be demolished in a few hours- along with us if we don't get out in time; not to mention the trouble we'll get into if the construction crew catches us. What a great place for four thirteen year old underage wizards with no access to magic."

James gave him a mock glare. "Don't tell me you've changed your mind, Mooney."

Remus grinned. "No way!" he exclaimed. It's just the responsibility of being the most mature one in the group," He explained. "Every time we're about to do something stupid, I have to tell you its stupid, then list all the reasons why. That way, when it blows up in our faces, at least I can say 'I told you so'"

"Come on, you know you love it,"

Remus grinned hugely. "Yeah, it is fun… but remember, I did warn you."

"Silence," said James, peering around the wall. "The workers are distracted. Let's go!"

They both grinned as the four friends stood up and sprinted towards the building.

Xxx

"You know what?" asked James one morning during their fifth year Christmas break.

"What?" asked Remus, not looking up from his book.

"I think I've finally figured out why Evans keeps refusing me."

"And why would that be?"

"I think that she really does love me, she's just intimidated by my amazing good looks."

"Seriously, Prongs?" Remus finally looked up at James.

"Yes! I mean, it's so obvious, isn't it? I can't believe I didn't come up with it sooner!"

Remus just stared at him.

"I know, sometimes being this gorgeous is a curse. I mean, any of the girls in Hogwarts could just come right up to me and ask me out, then take one look at my blinding good looks, and suddenly become shy and just turn around and leave, and then I'd never get a date!" James shouted, laughing like crazy.

Remus face palmed. "Is the word 'humility' even in your vocabulary?"

James glared. _"I _don't need humility, because all those things are true. Anyways, I came up with an idea"

"Uh oh…"

"Yep! Later today, when I see Evans in the common room, I'll give her this! James said enthusiastically, shoving a colourful piece of paper into Remus' hands.

Remus looked confused. "And this would be…?"

"It's obviously a Christmas card, Mooney!"

Remus starred at the card sceptically. He rotated it sideways and squinted at it.

"I don't know…" he said. "It doesn't look quite right…"

James suck out his tongue and snatched the card away. "Well it's the thought that counts."

Remus sighed. "Either way, how is this going to help with the Lily chasing?"

"Well, that is explained in part two of my plan. You will be levitating mistletoe above us at that time. After I give her the Christmas card, she'll be touched, then, when I 'notice' the mistletoe and mention it to Evans, she wont be able to resist! What do you think?"

Remus groaned. Why did James have to be so crazy sometimes? "I think you need to have your head examined. Come on Prongs, this is a stupid plan!"

"My plan is _not_ stupid, Moony. Nothing that is conceived in the mind of James Potter is stupid."

"Wrong," said Remus with a grin. "At least half of what's conceived in the mind of James Potter is stupid."

James gasped dramatically. "Moony, you wound me deeply! How could you insult my brilliance?" he asked in mock offence.

"You make it pretty easy," said Remus said with an amused smile.

James glared at him. "And people think you're the nice one…" He grumbled. "Come on, let's go find Evans."

"If you insist on going through with this… I still say its nuts…"

"Nope! Today, I get Lily!" He started humming 'Frosty the Snowman' while he walked out of their dormitory.

Of course, though, James didn't get Lily.

Xxx

In a barely lit street in Hogsmeade, the loud, ruckus laughter of two eighteen year old boys, barely a year out of Hogwarts, echoed around the empty alley.

"I'm telling ya Mooney, that girl _likes _you," Said James. His words were slightly slurred, evidence of the not too small amount of alcohol he had been drinking

"Oh yeah, she must have a thing for scrawny bookworms," his friend replied. They both started laughing insanely.

"Well what do we have here?" Said a low, rough voice that neither boy could identify. The two of them looked around for the voice's owner.

"Are they exactly what they seem, just a couple of lousy drunken teens? Or are they something worse?"

A tall, strong looking man stepped towards them out of the shadows.

"I hear that this one," the man gestures at Remus, "Is a _werewolf_. We don't like those nasty creatures around here," the man said slowly and emphatically. "Do we, boys?"

At that, several more men stepped forward, surrounding the two teenagers.

"My friend is _not_ a 'nasty creature,'" James says firmly.

The man laughed, and moved towards Remus. He raised a fist and aimed to punch the boy. James grabbed his arm and held tight.

"Leave. Him. Alone." he said quietly, almost whispering.

"This doesn't concern you, boy. Leave now while you're still in one piece."

James said nothing, just glared silently at the man in front of him, and stood purposefully between him and Remus.

"Whatever you like," the man spat. He pulled his hand away and lunged at them but James dodged his fist and punched him in the gut. The man staggered back a few steps.

He glared dangerously. "Oh, you're asking for it. Come on boys," he said. The other men started drawing closer. The two young wizards stood back to back, their wands pointed outward.

"There are a lot more of them than us, James," Remus whispered nervously. "This isn't a good idea."

"I don't care," James said in a quiet, dangerous voice. "They are being prejudiced, and they are being cowards. They need a lesson."

"Oi, what the bloody hell is goin on 'ere" shouted a familiar voice, with overly slurred words that showed how completely drunk the person was. "We stay back for a few more drinks, and we miss all the fun?"

"Are you two in some sort of trouble?" the shorter one asked.

"Now what gives you that idea, Wormy?" James asked, not taking his eyes off the hostiles.

The two new teenagers passed the wall of attackers and stood next to James and Remus.

"Are we getting into a fight?" asked Sirius. "Excellent."

The four boys stood in a square, facing their opponents, wands drawn.

"Ten to four," said Peter. "They don't stand a chance.

"LET'S DO THIS!" Sirius shouted, and he charged at the nearest attacker. That's how the fighting started. There was use of wands at first, but it quickly descended into an all out fist-fight.

Soon enough, all the attacking men were on the ground, unconscious. The Marauders were in the center, covered with many cuts, bruises, black eyes and bloody noses, but with triumphant expressions on their faces none the less.

"That was bloody awesome!" Sirius said. Then he took two steps, swayed, and fell over.

Peter rolled his eyes. "Had a little too much to drink there, Paddy?" He asked mockingly.

"Oh shut up Wormy."

James made his way to Remus, who was kneeling on the ground, breathing hard.

"I can't believe we managed that," he said.

We're just that awesome," James laughed. Then he looked at Remus more seriously. "The bloody cowards deserved it. People need to stop being so judgmental."

Remus looked up at him. "You didn't have to do that, you know."

"'Course I did. What are friends for?" James laughed and offered him a hand. "Come on; let's go help Wormtail with Sirius the nut."

Xxx

Remus sat on a bench outside the room where the Order of the Phoenix meeting would be held. This would be the first meeting for him and the other Marauders. This was when they would really become part of it.

He was delaying going into the room for as long as he could. He told himself he just needed to prepare. But the truth was he was afraid.

Lily and the other Marauders walked past him on their way to the room. James stopped in front of him.

"Remus, are you coming?"

"Yeah, just… just give me a minute."

James told the others to go on ahead, that he and Remus would be there in a minute, and sat down next to his friend.

Remus watched the others go in, a deep feeling of fear working its way through him.

"What's up?" asked James.

"Oh… nothing really," Remus replied.

"Come on Mooney, I've known you long enough to be able to tell when you're upset."

"Well it's just…" Remus hesitated, but decided he could tell his friend. "It's this whole Order of the Phoenix thing. I know we all wanted to join it- don't get me wrong, I still do- but this whole thing scares me a little."

"We're all afraid, Remus."

"I know, it's just…" Remus trailed off.

"What exactly are you afraid of," James asked him.

"Well… what if you and Sirius and Peter and Lily… what if one of you… gets killed, or all of you? I'm not sure what I would do then."

James faced the floor. "We know what we're getting into, Remus, and we've all accepted the risks," he said quietly.

"I know, I understand that, but I'm still afraid. You guys are all my friends… I don't want to lose you."

James moved his gaze up, and looked Remus right in the eyes. "Remus," James said in a serious tone that Remus had rarely heard his friend use, "we will always_, always _be friends, understand? No matter what happens, no matter where we go, no matter what we do with our lives, no matter if one of us… dies. We _will_ be friends."

Remus nodded stonily, but that bad feeling was still there. He slumped back and stuffed his hands in his pockets. He felt something cold and rough. His fingers curled around it, and he pulled it out.

He recognized the small yellow stone carving immediately. It was the present James had given him when they were graduating Hogwarts.

"Hey," James said, "Is that-"

Remus nodded, a ghost of a smile appearing on his lips. A sudden rush of memory came through of the day he had gotten it.

It was their last day at Hogwarts and Remus had been so afraid that after they left, his friends would all go their own ways and forget about him. He had been projecting this fear the last few weeks, apparently. He remembered James' comforting words: "It'll take more than that to get rid of us, Remy," reverting to the nickname Remus had hated in the first year. Then James had thrown him this.

He stared at the object I his hands. It was a slab of yellow marble in the shape of a rose. It was roughly carved, as James had done it himself, by hand. A yellow rose. Remus knew it was the symbol of friendship, a sentiment he wouldn't have expected from James Potter.

He flipped it over to the flattened stone bottom and ran his fingers over the words James had carved there: _A friend is always a friend. _He smiled slightly.

He looked up at James, who was also smiling at the words.

"Never forget that," He said quietly, also running his hands over the words as well.

"We'll always have the memories," Remus said, smiling fully now.

James grinned and stood up. "Come on; let's get in there before they start without us." He grabbed Remus by the arm and pulled him to his feat.

"Just remember," he said quietly. "We will always be friends. No matter what"

Remus smiled, and, as he looked back on all those years of being friends, he knew it was true.

**A/N: Well, what do you think? It took me several tries to come out with this. I rewrote scene three twice to get it like this, and I'm still not sure I did their friendship justice… Anyway, what do you think? Please Review and tell me. **


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